A Star Trapped in Heaven
by ringtailpossum
Summary: Lucy invites Loke to her 1-year anniversary of joining the guild party, however she gets more than she bargained for when another spirit comes with him. Who is this spirit? Why is she so jumpy? Lucy will learn more about the celestial spirit world and being a celestial wizard than ever before.
1. Chapter 1

It was a beautiful sunny day and as Lucy entered the guild hall with Plue at her heels she was greeted by the expected noise. What was not expected however, was everyone cheering for her as she walked in.

'What's going on guys?' Lucy asked.

Levy walked over to her together and gave her a hug. 'We are celebrating your one year anniversary of joining the guild! Mira and I have been planning this for a week!'

'Wow! It feels like so much longer with all the crazy things we have done!' Lucy smiled at all her friends, before realising that someone was missing. 'I should summon Loke if we are having a party, it has been ages since he caught up with everyone at the guild.'

Pulling out his key and twirling it around her fingers she called: 'Open, Gate of the Lion!'

There was a bright golden light and Loke appeared, however promptly fell over as a little girl cannonballed into his back. Everyone stared as Loke picked himself up and straightened his glasses, looking around the hall in a confused manner and then at the young girl who was also standing up. She appeared to be around Wendy's age, with short light brown hair that fluffed up in every direction, dark brown, almost black eyes and a dress that was rather plain besides the patchy colour of many shades of brown, grey and black woven together. The most unusual thing however, were two pointed dog ears on top of her head.

She glanced around with a bewildered and slightly terrified look on her face before spotting Loke and hurrying over to him. Clinging at his sleeve she asked 'Wh… where are we?'

Loke looked down at the girl and frowned, 'We are in the human world - the Fairy Tail Guild, but how did you get here?'

'I…I don't know', she whispered uncertainly, 'but maybe I fell through your gate?'

'Yeah… I suppose…. Oh!' Loke started suddenly. 'Sorry Lucy, you called?'

Lucy seemed to finally get over her shock at the unexpected appearance of the girl and the slight amusement of Loke face planting.

'Oh, um, I am having a party for, uh, one year since I joined the guild. I thought, um, you might like to join' she stuttered.

Loke's face brightened, 'I would love to!'. Then he followed Lucy gaze down to the young girl still holding his arm and trying to hide slightly behind his back. 'My apologies! This is Sirius, my little sister, the dog spirit.'

'Oh, like Plue?' Lucy asked glancing at her strange snowman-like dog who was dancing.

Sirius followed her glance and her face lightened as she saw Plue. 'Nikora!' she called out happily, letting go of Loke and crouching down with her arms out and hugging Plue as he ran into her arms.

'Puu-pun puuuun-pun-pun,' Plue said to her

Surprisingly, Sirius seemed to understand, 'yes, you're right. I shouldn't be here. I will see you at home later.'

Dropping Plue she got up and looked at Loke. 'Sorry for knocking you over, we can finish what we were doing later.' She turned, avoiding the gaze of any other guild members and began to glow silver. However, she was suddenly flung backwards and fell on her bottom with a short cry of pain.

Loke looked astonished. 'What happened?'

'I can't open my gate,' Sirius whimpered, 'maybe…. Since I came through your gate, I can only leave through your gate?' She looked at him hopefully.

'Sorry, I can't leave now. My wizard needs me, ' he said with a cheeky grin at Lucy.

Lucy glared at him and quickly cut in, 'you are welcome to stay until Loke leaves.'

'But….' Sirius looked terrified and looked around the room as if searching for an escape.

Loke looked down at her sympathetically. He kneeled down in front of her and looked her in the eyes. 'You will be okay here,' he promised. 'I will protect you and Nikora can stay with you and if you start to feel the pain from being in the human world, I will take you straight back to the celestial world, okay?'

She nodded slowly and he smiled. 'You can play with Plue and I'm sure Wendy will look after you too.'

'Of course,' said Wendy walking up and taking Sirius' hand with a big smile and leading her away with Plue following.

* * *

_Hi, I'm ringtailpossum and this is my first ever fanfiction. I love fairy tail and I thought that the spirits and their world are severely overlooked in fanfiction. I hope you like it, please review and let me know how I went and if you want me to continue._

**_Disclaimer:_**_ I don't own fairy tail or the characters. I do own my characters who are Sirius, Chrissie and Gwador._

_Also, I know that Sirius is actually a star and the constellation is called Canis Major but the name didn't work for me._


	2. Chapter 2

After two hours Sirius seemed happy playing with Wendy and Plue and Loke was enjoying talking to his guild friends, standing in a loose circle trading stories. As he glanced over at her, Natsu suddenly asked, 'so why was that little girl beating you up, anyway?'

'Huh?'

'She knocked you flat on the ground!'

'Oh…well… we were fighting, actually,' Loke said, looking embarrassed.

Elfman looked furious. 'Why were you fighting?! What sort of man attacks a timid little girl!

Loke stepped back in shock, raising his hands, 'she really isn't shy and timid, she was just nervous about being here! It was like a training fight and, besides, Sirius is strong enough to-'

'Beat you up?' cut in Gray.

'No!' yelled Loke, blushing furiously, while everyone laughed.

While her friends were teasing Loke, Lucy looked was looking puzzled. 'You said she was your sister. How is that even possible?'

'I'm sure you don't really want to go into the wacky details of celestial spirit relations.'

Yes, I do,' said Lucy firmly, 'I'm a celestial wizard, so I should learn as much about spirits as I can.'

'Fine.' Loke took a deep breath, 'The stars were not always in the same positions as they are now. My brightest star, Regulus was born out of the same dust as Eta, one of Sirius' stars. They stayed together for thousands of years, but eventually they moved and started to form constellations and the spirits were born. The two stars are kin and so Sirius and I are siblings.'

Lucy stared at him, utterly stunned at the strange explanation. 'Oh, wow. So her star and your star are siblings. Wait does that mean that her star is younger because she is your little sister?'

'Uhhh, no actually, I just say that because she is younger than me - only a thousand years old.'

'REALLY?' Happy exclaimed. 'How old are you then? Are you a really old grandpa spirit?'

'Um…. Let's just say I am older than her.'

* * *

Mirajane announced that lunch would be served soon, so all the Fairy Tail guild members rushed to sit at a table. Natsu, Gray, Lucy, Erza, Happy, Carla and Loke sat down together. Wendy and Sirius quickly appeared at the call of food, with Plue riding on Sirius' shoulders. They walked over talking and giggling and sat down at the table too. They all tucked into the delicious roast chicken and began laughing and chatting. Gray and Natsu began a competition to eat more than each other before Erza scolded them for not sharing food with everyone else. They meekly apologised and offered the food to their friends.

'We didn't have a proper introduction earlier,' Lucy said to Sirius, 'I'm Lucy, Loke's celestial wizard.'

'Well I am Sirius, or canis major, the dog spirit,' Sirius replied happily shaking Lucy's outstretched hand, 'but of course I know who you are.'

'Really? Why's that?'

Sirius' eyes widened in surprise. 'You mean that none of your spirits told you?'

'Told her what?' asked Loke, turning around from flirting with Lisanna at the opposite table.

'Told me what?' asked Lucy, looking from Sirius to Loke and back.

'Uh, I mean, I just um, meant that your spirits, uh, you have a lot of spirits and, um, they all speak highly of you,' stuttered Sirius, watching Loke carefully.

'It's okay, you can tell her,' said Loke in a low voice, seeing that Lucy could tell Sirius was lying.

'The Celestial Spirit King announced that you were a friend to spirits and that we should all try to help you if we ever had the opportunity!' Sirius blurted out quickly.

Lucy was stunned. 'Thanks.'

* * *

Loke excused himself to go 'find some drinks' and walked away, angling towards a group of newer girls to the guild.

Natsu leaned towards Sirius with a big grin, 'Hey, since you are his sister, I bet you know some really funny stories about him. Come on, tell us.'

'Yeah!' said everyone suddenly looking towards Sirius hopefully.

She blushed and fiddled with her hair nervously, 'I don't know, spreading stories about Leo could be dangerous.'

Wendy nudged her. 'Come on, I can tell you have a great story. And he won't get mad.'

'Okay' said Sirius, smiling. 'There was this one time he tried to eat one of Aquarius' fish and….'

Everyone laughed at the hilarious story, Natsu the hardest of all, involving a half-drowned lion spirit, an angry mermaid, a tuna fish, a pitchfork and a tsunami.

'So, what is this place exactly?' asked Sirius through tears of laugher.

'It's our guild hall,' said Gray.

'What's a guild?'

Erza decided to explain. 'It's a place where wizards can gather together to work and make friends. Our guild is called Fairy Tail and it is the best in Fiore.'

'Wow, cool!' Sirius said excitedly. 'Does that mean that you are all wizards?'

'Of course!' said Natsu loudly. 'I am a mighty FIRE DRAGON SLAYER! That reminds me are there any dragon spirits that I could practise my magic on?'

'No.'

'Oh.'

'I'm a dragon slayer too,' said Wendy, 'I learnt from the sky dragon Grandina.'

'I'm an ice-make wizard, I can make anything out of ice,' said Gray.

'I have the ability to requip my armour and weapons to suit my opponents,' said Erza.

'And I'm a celestial wizard, of course,' said Lucy, holding up her gate keys.

'Wow! You have so many zodiac keys,' said Sirius.

'You're a spirit too, right?' said Happy, 'That means you have a key too, right? So who has your key?'

Very suddenly Sirius' eyes darkened and all of her recently found joy and confidence disappeared and looked very nervous and her breathing became panicky.

'Uhhh… pl..please excuse me… for a moment,' she said, barely audibly. Sirius stood up and ran out of the guild hall, leaving the table in stunned silence.


	3. Chapter 3

Everyone stared after Sirius as the guild doors swung shut behind her. Then Lucy turned to glare at Happy who asked, 'What? What did I say?'

Wendy stood up, 'I will go after her.'

'Are you sure?' asked Gray. 'She looked pretty scared, it might be safer to leave her alone.'

'No. Loke asked me to take care of her. I can't just leave her when she is upset,' said Wendy decisively, walking out of the hall with Plue wobbling along behind her.

Loke, who had noticed the doors slam shut, looked over at the table to see Sirius gone and Wendy and Plue follow suit. He blew a kiss goodbye to the group of swooning girls he had been chatting with and slowly walked over to the table where Happy was trying to shield himself from Lucy's furious glare.

'Hey, what's going on?' he asked.

Happy looked at him and quickly flew to hide behind his shoulder, 'It wasn't my fault!'

Lucy glowered at him and then replied to Loke's question, 'Well, we were talking to Sirius….'

'About magic,' cut in Natsu.

'And types of wizards,' said Gray.

'And THEN…,' said Lucy turning her head to look at Happy accusingly, 'Happy made her upset and she ran away.'

'No I didn't!' squeaked Happy defensively, ' I asked her a perfectly normal question!'

'About what?' said Loke impatiently, glancing over to the group of young girls he had been flirting with.

There was a pause, as if everyone was unsure of Loke's reaction after witnessing Sirius' terror.

'…her key,' said Carla, finally.

'Oh' was all Loke said as his eyes became filled with pain and he dropped his head to stare at the floor. He stayed that way for several minutes, seemingly lost in thought, or perhaps a horrific memory until Happy whispered, 'Was that a bad question?'

Loke sighed deeply and sat down heavily on the bench, 'No, it is only a bad question for some spirits. Sirius in particular has had horrible luck with her key, celestial wizards and the human world in general.'

'Can you tell us?' asked Erza quietly.

Loke considered this for several moments, looking at the concerned faces of all his friends before beginning the tale.

* * *

'I told you that Sirius is a young spirit, only a thousand years old, one of the youngest spirit in our world. For new spirits, it takes a while for them to learn to control their powers and be… mature enough to go to the human world. Sirius was always a bundle of joy and excitement and couldn't wait to visit the human world like everyone else. So she worked really hard, practising and training constantly, and continuously pestered the zodiac spirits and even the Celestial King about getting a key. Eventually, when she was 200 years old, the King forged her key with the celestial wizard, Rosanna.'

'What?!' interrupted Lucy, 'The key was forged by a wizard?!'

'Yes, all celestial gate keys require a wizard and a spirit to be made. They need to contain magic from both worlds in order to work, so the King will ask the most powerful wizard of the time to assist him. Perhaps you could perform this sacred task one day Lucy. Once her key was completed, the Celestial King left it with Rosanna, telling her use it carefully, as Sirius was a new spirit.

'Of course, Rosanna was a powerful wizard and kind to her spirits, but she was on a quest to find all twelve zodiac keys and knew she would have little time to spare on a spirit with no experience, so she gave the key to her daughter, Chrissie. She would have been the same age as Wendy and it was her first gate key, just as she was Sirius' first human. Chrissie was not as interested in fighting and power as her mother. They became best friends, spending so much time together that Sirius would almost get sick from being in the human world too long. Sirius did not care, she was happy and loved Chrissie a lot. Actually, I think that she is so relaxed around Wendy is that she reminds her of Chrissie.' Loke smiled slightly at that last thought.

'Then, one day Sirius had to learn about mortality.'

* * *

_I hope you like this story. I would really appreciate some reviews because it is my first one and I want some tips for improvement._

_ringtailpossum_


	4. Chapter 4

'But Sirius,' interjected Wendy, 'why would your key bring up bad memories for you?'

Sitting on a park bench in the streets of Magnolia, Sirius sat with Wendy's arm around her shoulder and Plue sitting on her lap. She sighed sadly, tears glistening in the corners of her eyes.

'It all started back when I was young….'

* * *

_Flashback - Celestial Spirit World, 800 years ago_

_The Celestial sky shines brightly with all the stars of heaven, with planets and galaxies interwoven with multi coloured streams and trails of spiritual energy flashing across the sky in random and intricate patterns. The scene is broken by the sound of laughter and shouting._

_'Come on Sirius! Come play with us!' Tucana, the toucan spirit called, while playing a chasing games with the other young spirits. He was a young boy, the loudest of the younger spirits, arrayed with toucan feathers. He was always the one to start up games, often inventing them himself and liked to make sure everyone had fun and no one was excluded. He and a few of his friends waved over at Sirius as they played power chase, a game like chasey with full use of any powers. _

_'I can't,' Sirius called back, shaking her wispy hair out of her face, 'maybe next time!'_

_'Siriuuussss,' complained Tucana, 'all you do is work! You need to have fun some time! I know you want your key, but most spirits don't get theirs until they are 300 at least! You need to take a break!'_

_'Sorry, maybe later,' Sirius replied with a smile, 'I am so close to mastering this I can taste it!'_

_Tucana rolled his eyes and grinned at her before turning back to his game._

_Sirius returned to her efforts in practising her transformation. She really was getting better! She would prove to everyone that she was ready for the human world! She took a deep breath and glowed with silver magic, transforming into a powerful black dog and back again. A grin stretched across her face as it was her fastest transformation yet. _

_With that grin plastered on her face she ran all the way to the Celestial Palace. She was so excited that she cannonballed straight into Virgo, who was exiting the Great Hall._

_'Ow!' She squealed as she fell backwards on her bottom, skidding across the floor of the courtyard. _

_'I'm sorry,' said Virgo with a blank expression. 'Can I help you Sirius?' she asked with the air of someone who knows the answer and is resigned to it._

_'I'm ready for my gate key!' Sirius announced, jumping up off the ground._

_Some of the other zodiac spirits were filtering out of the Great Hall behind Virgo after their meeting heard this and looked over._

_'Isn't this the third time you have asked this week?' asked Aquarius nastily. 'Just face it honey you are not ready and begging us every day is not going to change that.'_

_'If I keep asking then you will say yes one day,' said Sirius, smiling, 'I have been training and training and I KNOW that I could handle it.'_

_'We just aren't sure if you are ready dear,' said Aries nervously._

_'You are too young sweetheart,' said Cancer, 'maybe you could keep trying and come back in 20 years and we could…'_

_'No! Really! I can do it! Why don't you trust me!' said Sirius, beginning to look a little disheartened. 'I won't leave this time until I can see the Celestial King! You never let me ask HIM! I am not moving!' She folded her arms and stomped a foot on the ground for emphasis. _

_At that moment, Leo, leader of the zodiacs walked into the courtyard. Upon hearing Sirius' decree, he smiled slightly._

_'Back again, Sirius?' he called loudly, catching the attention of all the spirits who begun to gather, watching the stubborn little girl with amusement._

_'Leo!' she called back with a touch of surprise and hint of anger. 'I demand you let me see the King! You always send me away! But I am ready!'_

_'Ready are you?' asked Leo in a patronising tone slowly walking towards her. 'You have been declaring that for the last ten years! Trust me when I say that you are not.'_

_'What must I do to prove to you all that I am strong enough to handle myself?!'_

_'You know, there is not generally a test to be able to earn your key. All you need is a zodiac spirit to recommend you to the King. However, none of them are willing to do that for you. If you want to change my mind and prove that you are ready… You must defeat me in battle!'_

_There was a collective, almost inaudible gasp from the crowd of spirits that had gathered to watch the spectacle. Even the heads of the zodiac spirits snapped up, looking concerned when Leo said this._

_'I will give you an option,' said Leo with a vicious smirk on his face, like a lion that had cornered his prey. 'You can leave now and continue to train. You will not come here constantly begging for your key and we will reassess your readiness in the usual way in fifty years. Or you can fight me now. If you win, I will recommend you to the Celestial King myself. If you lose you will leave and we will not reassess you for one hundred years. Think about how badly you want this and make the smart choice, Sirius.'_

_While all the other spirits seemed nervous about Leo's announcement, knowing that there was no way little Sirius could win, the spirit herself was watching Leo carefully, evaluating whether he was serious about his offer. Suddenly, her eyes shone with determination and she lowered herself into a fighting crouch._

_Just as Leo was turning away with a smug expression on his face, believing to have won fifty years free of pestering, he heard Sirius shout 'You're on, Leo!' and turned back around to see the dog spirit sprinting towards him across the loose arena formed by the crowd of spectators._

* * *

_Thanks for reading! I hope you like it. Please review - I really want to know how good or bad my story and writing is and if I should continue._

_I think I should update my disclaimer - I don't own the Fairy Tail characters, but the others are mine: Sirius, Rosanna, Chrissie, Gwador and Tucana._

_By the way, Tucana is a really a toucan constellation - the things you learn from random trivia._


	5. Chapter 5

'…and so she shouted 'You're on, Leo!' and came flying at me as I was walking away thinking I had beaten her.'

'Wow, Loke. That was a pretty harsh challenge,' said Gray. 'Why would you even offer her the choice when you knew she couldn't win?'

'It was quite a cruel thing to do to such a determined child,' Loke replied with a smile at the memory. 'I honestly thought that she would pick to wait fifty years, which is what she would have had to wait anyway. I didn't know her very well back then, only as an annoying young spirit that was a bit too cocky. I knew that she would continue to pester us for the next fifty years until we allowed her to meet the King and we were all getting frustrated by her stubbornness. I hoped that the choice would show her that she had a chance, but was not ready and she would ask us at least half the amount that she had been. She caught me off guard with her immediate response - she wanted to see the human world more than anything….'

* * *

_Flashback - Celestial Palace Courtyard, 800 years ago_

_Leo had just turned around as Sirius, in mid run, jumped into the air and aimed a foot towards his face. He was completely unprepared and managed to just swerve awkwardly out of the way as Sirius went flying above him. As she hit the ground, however, she pushed off with one foot immediately, tackling into Leo's legs while he was still off balance. He tripped over and caught himself on his hands and knees, while Sirius, who had not really planned the attack past that point, went sprawling on the dirt. Both of the sprang up quickly. _

_'Sirius, please, you can't beat me. I will ignore that attack if you give up now and you will only wait fifty years.'_

_'No way! You said I could fight you to prove myself and I will! I know that I am ready and if I truly am not like you say, then I need to prove to myself that I am unready! I want to see the human world more than anything and I don't think I could stand another week, let alone fifty years! So if I have the chance to get my key now, then I will try my best!'_

_As they were speaking, the two spirits slowly circled each other, watching each other for the next move._

_Leo sighed. 'Fine. As you wish. Prove your strength to me.'_

_'No! Please don't hurt her Leo!' Aries cried out._

_'Maybe you should reconsider Leo,' said Scorpio, 'she may be an annoying brat, but she doesn't deserve to get beaten and another fifty years of waiting.'_

_'I already made her that promise and she has made her choice,' said Leo in a proud tone. 'I am a lion, I never back out of a promise or a challenge.'_

_Sirius began to glow with a silver light and transformed into a giant black dog, twice the height of Leo at the shoulder. Leo looked slightly impressed before summoning the power of Regulus and facing charging canine. He dodged easily past her and she skidded long the ground from momentum. Then Leo stuck out his leg, tripping Sirius' hind leg so she fell face first on the ground. She growled and shook herself as she stood up and pounced towards Leo, who let her land on top of him and push him to the ground before flipping her off by kicking her stomach. This continued but soon, Sirius realised that rushing at Leo was not effective and tried a slower approach, however he punched her shoulder with a glowing fist sending her sprawling. Too injured to maintain her transformation she glowed silver and reverted to a little girl with dog ears. She was on her hands and knees breathing heavily when she heard Leo say in a kind voice:_

_'Sirius, that's enough. I don't want you to get hurt. You can't win this fight. I can see that you are strong and clever, but you need to show me you are smart enough to know when to give up. I promise I won't make you wait one hundred years, only fifty at the most.'_

_'No…' she said, panting, 'I want to go to ….the human world. I see all of you come back glowing with pride and happiness from helping your wizard. What if there is someone waiting for me? What if a wizard needs me now? I can't wait fifty years because if that one person who needs me is out there now, it will be too late to help them.'_

_She got up slowly, her eyes determined, 'I have to try to help them! And the only way to do that is beating you!'_

_She ran towards the lion, engaging him in hand to hand combat, landing several hits before Leo was able to break out of his stunned amazement. How is it that she already understands the purpose of helping humans? he thought. None of the other young spirits have this. _

_Leo made a decision to end the fight. He grabbed her arms and pulled them behind her back, restraining her. 'Sorry, this is the end.'_

_Sirius was kicking and flailing, but at these words she knew that she could not break his grip and sagged in defeat, tears welling in her eyes. As Leo let go of her, the other spirits began walking away, knowing it was over. _

_'Serves you right,' said Aquarius, stalking away with Scorpio._

_Aries gave Sirius a sad smile and nodded at Leo before walking away too._

_When all the spectators had finally left, Leo looked down at Sirius who was struggling not to let tears fall. _

_'You know, you have some talent. Your transformation lasted much longer than I expected.'_

_Sirius looked at slightly at the praise as Leo continued, 'I think you could be a great fighter, but even more importantly a great protector.'_

_Sirius now looked confused at this. How can I protect someone if I can't fight well?_

_'Protecting is more than just being strong or even smart. It is about truly believing what you are protecting and giving it your very best. You may not have won this fight, but you have won my approval. You may have your key.'_

_At this Sirius looked him in the eyes, gratitude and excitement lighting up her face. 'Thankyou!' she shouted, jumping up and hugging Leo, before quickly letting go. 'I mean, uh, thank you, uh, Lord Leo,' inclining her head slightly._

* * *

'Wasn't that a bit mean of Loke? I though he was your brother! He was going to make you wait fifty years!' said Wendy.

'It is more like three years for a spirit and we didn't actually know that we were related back then. Besides, relatives in the spirit world doesn't mean much when everyone is related to everyone in three different ways - it gets very complicated,' said Sirius, looking slightly happier at the memory. 'After my key was forged by the Celestial King and the wizard Rosanna….'

* * *

_Thankyou for reading. I really think this story is going to take off and get pretty big, so could you please, please review. I want to know if my writing is okay - criticise me all you want, or at least let me know if you are enjoying it._

_ringtailpossum_


	6. Chapter 6

_Flashback - Celestial World 800 years ago_

_Sirius was still bubbling with joy from hearing the Celestial King announce that her key was completed and now in the human world - active and ready for use. She could hardly believe it and she had been very anxious about being summoned, getting on the nerves of any spirit she came in contact with._

_One day she heard a distant, echoing cry, 'Open, Gate of the Great Dog - Sirius!'_

_Her body began to tingle and glow silver, like when she transformed and she felt as though she was being sucked in by a huge vacuum. _

_Once the light faded, Sirius noticed a strange sensation, like a weight pressing down on her stomach, causing her to feel slightly sick. I wonder if this is what the human world feels like? She pondered. Is this the beginning of the sickness and pain they talk about?_

_As her eyes adjusted, she looked around, noticing the grass and bright blue sky before looking at the young girl holding a silver key. She was fairly young, only about twelve years old, wearing a soft blue summer dress and with a tumble of blonde curls cascading down her back and framing her bright blue eyes. Sirius and the girl stared at each other for several moments, before Sirius realised that the girl must have summoned her to make a contract and be her wizard._

_'I'm sorry,' she said, bowing respectfully, but unable to erase the excited smile from her face.' My name is Sirius. Are you my celestial wizard?'_

_The blonde girl started slightly, ' Oh, I'm Chrissie. I didn't mean to stare, but I was expecting you to be… a dog.'_

_Sirius giggled nervously, 'Well, I could change into a dog if you prefer…'_

_'No! That's not what I meant!' said Chrissie hurriedly. 'So… uh, my mum said that I need to make a contract with you…'. Chrissie trailed off uncertainly._

_'Well, I am sort of new at this, but I am happy with anything,' said Sirius._

_'Okay!' said Chrissie happily. 'You know, I don't really have any friends my age, but I was hoping that you wouldn't mind playing with me every once in a while.'_

_Sirius' face lit up with joy, 'I would love to!'_

_Chrissie beamed and slung her arm around Sirius' shoulders. 'So do you know how to play Hide and Seek….?'_

* * *

_The glowing silver light faded and Sirius swayed unsteadily before falling to her hands and knees, breathing shallowly. Aries, who had been waiting for her return, knelt down beside her, stroking her back comfortingly. Leo stood a few steps away with his arms folded in an angry manner, but his eyes looked down on the dog spirit gently. _

_'You know, if you wanted to kill yourself, you should have stayed for a few more minutes. Maybe next time you will manage it,' said Leo sarcastically. 'If your key holder is forcing you to stay this long, you should have told someone.'_

_Sirius coughed and looked up at Leo with a frown creasing her brow. 'I'm fine,' she said stubbornly, still panting, but gradually recovering as the soothing feeling of the celestial world healed her._

_'We are only trying to help you,' said Aries softly. 'In the two weeks since you got your key, you have come back exhausted and hurt five times!'_

_'No! You have it wrong! My key holder is really nice! I just lose track of time… I love being in the human world and spending time with Chrissie! She's my best friend!'_

_'Well… okay,' said Aries uncertainly._

_'No, really!' said Sirius, smiling brightly, 'today she taught me how to play Hot Lava, which is where you pretend that the floor is lava and you hop on things around like this,' she demonstrated by hopping around, 'and then we were playing with catch with a ball, and then we played on the swings and we took turns pushing each other and…' Sirius trailed off after recounting her day as Leo simply ignored her and walked away._

_Aries smiled softly at her, 'Just be careful next time, okay?' and she walked away too. Sirius continued to smile with a sparkle in her eyes after the fun and excitement of her day._

* * *

'So then, what changed her? She seems so terrified of the human world now, and scared of staying too long and getting hurt,' asked Lucy.

'Like I said,' sighed Loke, 'She had to learn about mortality. It is a lesson no spirit takes well, but because she was so young when she got her key and so close as a friend to her keyholder… she was broken.'


	7. Chapter 7

_Flashback - Human World 793 years ago_

_'No!' gasped Sirius, her tear-blurred eyes staring at Chrissie's limp body falling to the ground. _

_It had been seven years since they had first met and while Sirius had remained unchanged in that time, save for her skill, strength and endurance, Chrissie had grown into a beautiful young woman with several strong celestial spirits and many wizard friends. Despite this, Sirius remained to be her best friend, even though she often fought in battles for her wizard, they still spent a lot of time together, simply talking and enjoying each other's company. _

_So it was that Chrissie and Sirius had been enjoying walking and talking with each other on a sunny afternoon on the edge of the forest a few miles south of Chrissie's town. They had walked together, stepping over the sunlit grass and listening to the gentle breeze and distant bird calls while catching up with each other since they had not been together socially for almost a month. Sirius loved hearing about how Chrissie had improved her summoning skills after a vigorous training session with her mother, or how she had found a new gate key for sale and needed help thinking of innovative ways to earn money for it, or the new boy in town who had handed her a flower as they passed in the main street of town. In turn, Chrissie was fascinated with Sirius' description of the celestial spirit world, learning about the history and relationships and origins of various spirits, as well as advising Sirius with her social life, like how to deal with the arrogant Scorpio, or what sort of birthday gift to get for Tucana. _

_On this particular afternoon, Sirius had been walking next to Chrissie, still with the giggle from her last comment on her lips, when she caught an unfamiliar scent and pricked her ears up, stiffening her body. Chrissie sensed her unease and began looking around the forest. _

_A huge man stepped out of the from the shadows of the trees. He was almost twice Chrissie's height with huge shoulders, wearing a long black cloak with a hood that covered his face from view. His head moved slightly to look Sirius up and down, from her bare feet to the tip of her dog ears and simply said, 'Ah, a Celestial wizard.'_

_He walked briskly towards Chrissie, as if going for a morning walk. Sirius felt a growl in the back of her throat and stepped between the two wizards in a fighting stance. _

_'Stay back,' warned Sirius, crouching lower in preparation to spring at the man and protect her keyholder. He made an amused noise and in a flash drew a sword from under his cloak and cut through Sirius' body. _

_'SIRIUS!' screamed Chrissie. Of course, as a spirit, Sirius would not die, but pain cut through her as the hole in her side began to glow. Realising that she would be forced back to the Celestial world, Sirius ran towards the cloaked man who simply threw out an arm and knocked her down while continuing his walk towards Chrissie. She fumbled quickly with her keys, but none of her spirits were stronger than Sirius and she couldn't summon another one anyway. _

_Sirius was fading back to the spirit world fast and her vision blurred with pain and tears. She could only make out a few details. A red stain across Chrissie's new white summer dress. A limp girl's body falling to the ground. A sword gleaming in the sunlight. A metallic smell that tainted the entire forest. The last thing she saw before the familiar sucking feeling dragged her back home was a silver key held delicately in the big fingers of a black glove. The key of Canis Major._

'Sirius, stop. You don't have to tell me. I'm so sorry,' Wendy rubbed the dog spirit's back with tears in her eyes as Sirius bawled her eyes out, taking in gasping breaths.

'It was my fault!' she burst out. 'It was **me**! He was after **me**! **I **didn't protect her! **I **was in the way of her summoning another spirit!'

Wendy continued trying to calm down Sirius as Magnolia residents passing by looked curiously at the two weeping girls on the bench.

'I'm so sorry Chrissie…'

* * *

'No…' whispered Lucy. 'That's awful…'

'How do you know all of that?' asked Gray.

'Sirius told me, but not for a very long time,' said Loke. 'She blamed herself - she still does - and took what came next as a punishment for failing her duties. She told no one what had occurred and that she now belonged to the man who murdered Chrissie. She told no one how he abused her.'

_Flashback - Human World 790 years ago_

_It was Gwador._

_That was his name. _

_The one who had killed Chrissie three years earlier. The one who had taken Sirius' key. _

_The constant thoughts echoed through her mind, as they had done since that day. _

_Sirius was huddled in the corner of a dimly lit room, appearing almost unconscious save for her shivering. She no longer looked like the spirit that only ten years ago challenged the leader of the zodiac to a fight with a smile on her face. Her ears were tattered and drooping and her wayward floaty hair now hung limp and matted. Her eyes were dull, no reflection of that mischievous sparkle that had previously lit them._

_Her knees were drawn up to her chest and her head downcast. Her arms were pinned behind her back by shackles. She had been in the human world for just over three days this time. She was vaguely aware that if he didn't release her soon, she could die, but she did not really care. _

_Gwador continued his work, analysing his notes, briefly coming over to check her pulse or slap her for whimpering. _

_Since he had found Sirius, Gwador had also obtained several other spirits in a similar manner, but none as powerful as her. She was the one he used in his experiments and she was the one he believed could lead him to his goal. _

'What could he possibly be trying to do?' asked Carla.

'He was seeking eternal life, and knew that the celestial spirits held the answer.'

'What?! Really?'

'Well we do live indefinitely,' said Loke, 'I know of no spirit to ever die from old age.'

'But it didn't work, did it?' asked Lucy.

'No,' agreed Loke, 'not once we realised what was going on.'

* * *

_Sorry I took so long to update. I didn't really think anyone liked my story that much. I would really appreciate some reviews to help me finish the story. Just let me know if you are enjoying it please._

_ringtailpossum_


	8. Chapter 8

_Flashback - Celestial World 790 years ago_

_As the silver glow faded, Sirius could be seen sprawled on the ground, breathing heavily and whimpering like a small puppy in pain. Tears ran freely down her face, but she made no move to wipe them away. She did not move at all besides the irregular rising and falling of her chest. _

_It had been too long in the human world again. Even though her world full of celestial magic was slowly healing her body, Sirius could not move at all from the pain and the amount of energy that had been drained from her by staying for over 4 days. _

_She cried because she was trapped by her own body. She wanted to run - run away from all the pain and run to someone -anyone- and ask for help. In her mind she could see herself finding Aries or Tucana or even Aquarius and telling them everything. Then they would tell the Celestial King and he would save her. Her foot twitched with the desire to run for a friend, but she still did not have the energy to move. She knew from experience, from so many times trying and trying, that by the time she would be able to move and search for anyone, Gwador would have called her back._

_Tears ran down her face at her helplessness. He only allowed her to return to the celestial world for brief respites so that she would not die, but only just. He would call her back after only a short while before she had even fully healed to continue his experimentation._

_Sirius' quiet whimpers echoed in her ears, but she knew no one was around to hear them._

_Aries was worried. She had not seen Sirius in several months. She had been too busy to notice, but on this particular day she realised she had not seen the carefree spirit in some time. _

_She does love the human world a lot, thought Aries fondly, she probably spends most of her time there._

_But it still didn't make sense. Sirius had been seeing her constantly after she got her key to seek advice and training and even just friendship. _

_Maybe she is just growing up and doesn't need my help anymore, Aries thought, but maybe I should check on her anyway._

_Aries set off towards the Celestial Palace, pau_s_ing along the way to ask passing spirits if they had seen Sirius. When the only replies he received were that Sirius had not been seen for several month, Aries began to grow concerned and decided to check the book of contract , a magical book that listed all spirits' current contracts automatically. Aries hurriedly flicked through the pages searching for Sirius' name and widening in fear when she saw it under the neatly printed name: _Gwador.

_From her own times in the human world Aries knew that Gwador was a criminal, but not much else. Judging by Sirius' disappearance, something bad had happened._

'Wait! A magic contract book? Seriously?' Lucy interjected.

'Yes,' said Loke impatiently, 'only a the King or the zodiac spirits are permitted to read it. It really isn't the important point of this. I'm trying to tell you what happened to Sirius, remember?'

'Oh… right, carry on.'

* * *

_Flashback - Human World 790 years ago_

_'Open, Gate of the Lion!'_

_There was a brilliant golden light and Leo appeared before the celestial wizard that had summoned him. His name was Benito. He was a young man and very skilled wizard with a floppy tumble of dark curls covering his head and an easy-going grin that attracted everyone he met to him. He had lots of contracts with celestial spirits and liked to use them to help others. Even though there weren't many magic guilds around he was a travelling mage who earned his living by helping others with his magic. _

_Benito had summoned Leo on this occasion, however because he had been receiving a strange feeling from the key that Leo wanted to speak to him._

_'Did you need to talk to me, Leo?' he asked as he relaxed back into a chair._

_Leo remained standing, his arms folded and not looking directly at the wizard. 'I need your help.'_

_'Huh?'_

_'Have you ever heard of the celestial mage Gwador?'_

_'Hmm, I have a feeling he was convicted of some sort of crime against spirits several years ago, wasn't he?'_

_'Yes, but he got off and now he is doing the same thing: catching spirits and using them for sick purposes. He wants immortality,' Leo stated bluntly._

_'What?' Benito sat up straight in shock. 'Where did you even learn about this?'_

_'It doesn't matter. I am going to stop him and rescue the spirits. If you help me you can probably gain some new spirits.'_

_Benito jumped out of his chair. 'You don't need to bribe me! Of course I'll help. Anyone who mistreats living beings like that deserves to be brought to justice.'_

'Who did you hear it from?' asked Gray.

'What?'

'How did you know about this Gwador guy?'

'I… uh…' Loke stuttered not making eye contact. 'I may have spied on Aries telling the Celestial King about the situation. He told her that there was not much we could do as he was a keyholder. He would have to break a law before we could take action, meaning that he would have to keep a spirit so long in the human world that they died. I decided to step in before that. If I got my wizard to hunt down the guy and he called on me to help, then I wouldn't technically be breaking the law as it is a dispute between two wizards.'

'So did you save Sirius?' asked Happy with wide eyes, clearly holding on to every detail of the tale.

'Well, yes we did rescue her from that awful man, but he did something we had not anticipated. You see when Benito and I confronted him…'


	9. Chapter 9

_Flashback - Human World 790 years ago_

_Benito approached the large ramshackle hut on the rocky cliff edge over a beach. The roof was sagging dangerously on one side and the salty wind had worn away at the wooden walls. _

_'This is the place,' Benito said in a low voice. _

_Knowing Leo's fury if he were to be left out of this fight Benito raised the key and in a burst of golden light the lion spirit appeared. Opting for a quieter approach so as to sneak up on Gwador, Benito gently pushed the door open, lifting it so it wouldn't drag along the floor. He entered and was followed closely by Leo._

_Despite outward appearances the interior was dark and gloomy and full of strange articles of furniture and machinery. The man in question was crouched in a corner, his back towards the door and apparently unaware of the intruders, intent on what he was doing. Leo, who had prowled silently across the room to gain a better view of what the man was doing, gagged silently at the sight. The syringe in Gwador's filthy hands was plunged into the arm of his prisoner - a spirit - was slowly filling with a slightly luminescent silver liquid. _

_Leo felt a low rumbling growl building in the back of his throat. Apparently, it become audible as he registered the warning glance Benito sent him and saw Gwador's form stiffen slightly and begin to turn. The growl evolved into a roar of anger as Leo, hands blazing with golden magical power, leapt at the black-cloaked figure, unable to hold himself back anymore. As Gwador turned he was shocked to find a fist hurtling towards his face. He was thrown back from the sudden unexpected impact and slid across the floor. _

_Realising stealth was no longer a viable option, Benito surged forward to where the criminal was struggling on his hands and knees. Before they could get there Leo leaped forward again, delivering a rib-cracking kick sending Gwador into the air where Leo's ready elbow plunged into his back and forcing back onto the floor. _

_Leo jerked forward to strike the man again, but Benito caught his arm._

_'That's enough - he's knocked out.'_

_Leo merely growled and shook of his master's arm glaring at the prone figure while Benito pulled out pair of handcuffs to block magical power as well as restrain physical movement. Leo twitched and seemed to be on the verge of disobeying his wizard's command as loathing blazed in his eyes. However, Leo's uncontrolled rage was brought to a screeching halt by quiet whimpering from the corner. All the desire to fight drained out of him and he turned around and slowly approached the spirit crouching down in front of her, with Benito following and standing behind his shoulder peering down at the abused spirit._

_Leo could make out two ragged ears peeking out through the twisted knots of hair and felt his blood run cold. The spirit slowly raised her eyes to meet his and he saw the dull fear the glazed her dark eyes._

_'Sirius?' he whispered, not believing that the irrepressible spirit was now this lifeless shell before him._

_'Leo?' a hoarse whisper broke through her cracked lips with a different disbelief - containing a flicker of hope._

_Leo reached out an arm slowly, but paused as Sirius drew back. Sirius looked ashamed of her brief fear and leaned forward to embrace Leo gently, sobbing quietly into his chest._

_'Oh, I'm so sorry…' he whispered._

_'It's good to… see you…' he croaked back, trying to regain some portion of her old playful banter, but the true gratitude was very evident._

_'Don't worry, you're safe now, you'll be fine.' Leo rocked her back and forth._

_A spluttering cough interrupted, 'Damn you girl! You called them here!'_

_Sirius flinched at Gwador's cruel voice and Leo immediately turned his head to glare at the criminal how had dragged himself into a sitting position._

_Benito strode angrily towards him, 'Leave her alone! You are under arrest and all of your contracts with your spirits are now cancelled. You can't hurt them anymore.'_

_'Ha!' he laughed, 'You think I don't know that? You think that I wouldn't know of your approach? That I wouldn't have an alarm system to warn me of intruders? Although that little demon over there,' he spat at Sirius, 'has betrayed me and prevented me from gaining the immortality I deserve, I have carefully planned my revenge on that useless, unhelpful spirit. My contract is broken, so she will go back to the spirit world. You can take my keys, but you will never find her key. She will be a spirit lost forever - a star trapped in heaven eternally! Never to be found and never to be remembered or known!'_

_Leo stood, on the verge of demanding the location of the key when Sirius began to glow. _

_'No, wait!'_

_But it was too late. It was Sirius' last moments in the human world for a long, long time. The last memories of the place - a dark and hopeless place, huddled in a corner, watching the gloating man's face laughing at her fate._

_'A Star Trapped in Heaven.'_

Loke's eyes were downcast in shame.

'Benito and I searched for years, but we never found it. For a while it was a popular legend - the lost key, a great mystery for any celestial wizard to solve. Many tried but the key as never found. Eventually even the legends disappeared and Sirius was forgotten by humans. This is the first time since that incident she has returned to this world.'

'Out of any spirit, the only one I can think of with the worst luck with a key is Sirius.'

'Are you feeling better now?' asked Wendy from beside Sirius on the bench.

'Yeah, let' go back inside… Leo will probably have been gossiping about me,' replied Sirius with a soft attempt at a cheeky remark.


End file.
